At Last
by Mia Sedai
Summary: Last part in my "what she's doing now" trilogy. Hermione is back, but will the trio manage to get back to the way they were, or has her absence changed everything?


A/N: This is the third story in my 'what she's doing now' trilogy. This one will be slightly longer than the others, and I hope you don't mind. I should also tell you that I spent ages trying to put this chapter down, and I haven't really decided if I like it or not. But either way, here it is. =) And as always, this is Jo's, not mine.

_At last my love has come along  
My lonely days are over  
And life is like a song_

The Burrow had not changed a bit since she saw it last. It had been more than five years, yet everything looked the same. Not even the flowers were changed. And everything about it reeked of the same familiar feeling she had found so appealing when she first came her at twelve. Through the years it had given her a sense of safety, no matter what happened in the world. And even after she left, the warmth and friendliness that this house offered would haunt her. And in the end it was this house that made her come back.

But a house is nothing without its occupants. And a house can not provide safety unless the ones living there provide the necessary feeling of protection. And more than anything the family living at the Burrow had been her safe haven when everything was falling apart around her. The Weasley's were the kind of people that radiated love and friendliness, and it had kept her going when things were rough. But in the end not even they had been able to make her stay. Because no one, not even they could protect her from herself. No one could.

So five years had passed, and now she was back. And the familiarity of it all made her feel seventeen again. For the first time in years the smile forming on her lips was sincere. She was home now, and clutching two well-read letters in her hand she took the last few steps towards the front door.

"Fred. Door." Ron Weasley barely looked up from his chess match long enough to direct the order to his older brother. He was just about to check mate his best friend and brother-in-law Harry Potter, and couldn't risk losing his concentration right now. Fred protested loudly, but it was lost on Ron who had returned his full attention to the game.

"If chess had been a class at Hogwarts," Ron said to Harry, "you, my friend, would have gotten a T. Check mate." He grinned wickedly, and Harry groaned and fell back in his seat. At twenty-three the two men were just as competitive as they had always been, and even though Harry knew there was no chance he would ever beat Ron at chess he kept trying. And if he lost, something that happened nine times out of ten, he would only suggest that they went outside for a little informal quidditch match, and then the tables would be turned. As it was, he was just about to tell Ron to go get his broomstick, when Fred entered, visibly shaken.

"Ron, Harry," he said quietly, causing both men to get to their feet in worry.

"What's wrong?" Ron said, visibly taken aback by his normally cheerful brother's serious expression.

"Nothing. Just… there's someone here to see you."

And then she was there. She stood in the doorway, looking worried and excited at the same time. Her hair was longer, Ron noted. Her body had changed as well. She was older. The realisation hit him with great surprise. Of course she would be older. That was how the world worked. Time went by, and you grew. But in his head she had never gone from being seventeen, and he realised now how stupid he had been.

He couldn't move. And apparently, neither could Harry. They were both rooted to the spot, staring at her like she was a ghost. It wasn't until she smiled, a gesture that seemed to light up the entire room, that they reacted. Within a second the three of them was embracing. They were holding on to each other like their very lives depended on it. Keeping her close to make sure she didn't disappear again. 'If this is a dream,' Ron thought, 'then please don't make me wake up. I don't ever want to wake up.'

A full minute passed, where they did nothing but hold onto each other, neither wanting to let go. But at last Hermione took a step back and looked at them both, tears all over her face.

"You have grown," she said softly, and Ron took a step back, overwhelmed by the sound of her voice. For so long he had tried to remember what her voice sounded like, but no matter how hard he had tried he hadn't been able to. And now that he finally heard it again it was like nothing he ever could have imagined. It was the most wonderful thing, and it stirred feelings in him that he had thought was long since buried, never to be retrieved again.

"Aren't you going to say anything?" she said then, and Ron looked at Harry and smiled.

"I'm sorry, Hermione," Harry said to her, probably sensing Ron's inability to do anything beyond staring. "We're just a bit…"

"Baffled," Hermione said with a smile, completing his sentence.

"Yes, baffled. And happy. And… oh God, Hermione. I can't believe it's really you."

She laughed then, and if her voice had made Ron unable to speak, her laughter almost knocked him off his feet. How could he possibly forget how she laughed? The way it seemed to make her entire face glow. And the way it made all his grievances disappear. If he could spend eternity listening to her laughter he would never be sad again.

"I really can't believe this either," she said and looked at them both. "I got your letters about a month ago, and in the end I knew I had to come back. I just missed you so much."

"I missed you too," Ron finally manage to get out, and at his words she gave him his undivided attention. "Bloody hell, Hermione, what took you so long?"

Harry interfered then, sensing that this was not the time.

"Come on in, Hermione," he said with a smile, giving Ron a look that clearly told him to leave it be for a little longer. For now they would leave it at getting reacquainted. The why's and wherefore's would have to wait a little longer.

Hermione left her cloak in the hallway, and Ron could see how she was taking it all in. And deciding to take Harry's advice he smiled too, deciding that the big questions could wait. Right now, all that mattered was that she was back.


End file.
